Chanya Lodge

The rooms at Chanya Lodge were clean and comfortable, just what I needed for a good rest after long days out. I enjoyed the restaurant food as well. Breakfast could use more variety and a better overall experience. It might also help to have separate accommodation for game drivers, plus hot meals, so they can rest properly before long drives and make things safer and better for everyone. Still, it’s a lovely lodge and I’d recommend it.

The property itself is attractive, with appealing rooms, a clean room in good condition, a pleasant restaurant pavilion, a nice pool, and a large, secure courtyard with parking. But there’s a lot of potential that isn’t being met because the service and organization need serious work. It gave me the impression that management had changed recently and many processes were still inconsistent. The restaurant was the biggest problem. Staff seemed unprofessional, hard to understand because they mumbled, and inflexible rather than guest-focused. Food quality went from mediocre to inedible. The a la carte servings were tiny for the prices. One dish was apparently forgotten, so we ate at different times even though we were the only guests there, and nobody acknowledged or fixed it. Filtered water listed on the menu suddenly wasn’t available; they suggested buying bottled water. Asking reception for another bottle also seemed to be too much and was refused. As things stand, I felt international guests were treated more like cash cows than valued visitors.

This is an okay place to sleep before heading to the mountain, and from what I heard there aren’t many alternatives nearby. I stayed as part of a Tanzania Specialist trip, and after climbing Kilimanjaro one of my rooms had no hot water. After days without a shower, that was pretty awful. I managed to negotiate with reception to use the shower in another room, but that gives you an idea of what to expect. The staff seem nice, though they often act as if they don’t understand, especially when you need something. The hotel itself is pretty mediocre.

A handy place near Moshi to begin our Tanzania trip and see the area around Mount Kilimanjaro. The staff were super friendly, the rooms were clean and spacious, and the food was good.